NCJ Number
215981
Journal
Youth Studies Australia Volume: 25 Issue: 3 Dated: September 2006 Pages: 34-41
Date Published
September 2006
Length
8 pages
Annotation
Using a range of measures, this study compared students' perceptions of "school climate" in several South Australian single-sex and coeducational schools.
Abstract
The findings show that some students' perceptions of "classroom climate"--defined as the "main features of the atmosphere, ethos, or milieu of the learning environment"--was largely influenced by their involvement in bully/victim interactions with other students. Students who perceived themselves as victims of bullying at school were less positive in their assessment of the school/classroom climate than students who were not being bullied. Boys were more likely to be victims of bullying than girls. Boy bullies were also less positive about the school/classroom climate, possibly because bullies tended to dislike school due to poor academic performance, teachers' criticism, and isolation from other students. The authors recommend that teachers be attentive to bullying behaviors by students and intervene to prevent its detrimental effects on the students involved. The study sample consisted of 531 students in eighth and ninth grades in 5 schools in Adelaide, South Australia. Questionnaires administered to the students included a school climate scale that measured students' satisfaction with their school/classroom experiences, a victimization scale that addressed students' experiences of being victims of various types of aggressive acts by other students, and a bullying scale that measured students bullying behaviors toward other students. 1 table, 2 figures, and 29 references